I am very surprised this restaurant hasn't caused more commentary and excitement on the forum. Are there any other fans our there? We've been devotees since they were located in Willow Grove, Pa. I just do not know how Rich and Kate do it. I leave there in such a foodgasmic state EVERY time I go and the flavors are so complex, rich and satisfying that it's like I have taken a drug and can't even break down the experience into logical words or small parts! My omnivore mother-in-law and husband feel the same way! I just want to know when Rich is going to open a vegan cooking school! I will be FIRST in line for that! I have tried to cook from his cookbook (the first) and it just fell so short of the restaurant experience that I had to stop trying.

I last ate there on Dec. 30. I had purple potato pierogies for my appetizer and eggplant bracciole for the entree. I also tried a beer from a brewery called Ballast Point which was on tap and am now searching for it high and low. It was an IPA and was fruity smelling. I think it is not the fish eye (which seems locally available) but another one called Sculpin since that flavor description fits better. Anywho, the meal was amazing. The pierogies were more like potato empanadas since they were fried and made with a phyllo-like dough. The bracciole was basically long slices of eggplant rolled up with a filling (cauliflower? if I remember correctly). It sounds horribly boring but if you read the description on their website, you can get more details. As I said, for me, it's like a fantasy head trip when I eat there so my descriptions can NEVER do it justice!

It's my absolute favorite restaurant, and I've been to all the good ones. I think it's come up before that the reason we don't talk about it as often as other places is because it's expensive/fancy and more of special-occasion place. I go there for birthdays, went for graduation, stuff like that. Oh man it's so good. I would love to go more often. Even my meat-3x-a-day father still talks about the jerk seitan tips.

I have some recollection of a thread about Horizons, or maybe a discussion of it in another thread? Anyway, yeah, I'm a big fan, too. It's just not in my budget except for special occasions. I love having a full menu to select from.

Is anybody else dissapointed by the fact that Horizons isn't as good as it used to be? I feel like the portions got WAY smaller and the prices went WAY up. The last 2 times I went there, I was so bummed out that I spent my hard earned money and wasn't even that satisfied. The bbq seitan app for instance, used to be a very nice size to split with someone else, now you practically have to fight over getting 2 maybe 3 bites each. I think that sucks because its so forkin good.

That being said, I do think Horizons is the best upscale food in the country, and i've been to candle79, blossom, and millenium. I will be trying portabello in portland later this year, i've been hearing great things about that place.

Their IPA right now is not vegan (at least to me), as they use gelatin in their lighter beers that is later filtered out before bottling. The brewer did tell me they will be switching to a centrifugal system for filtering the yeast next month. I will email them back again at that time to see if any still use gelatin.

Just an fyi to everyone, just because a restaurant is vegan, doesnt mean their beer/liquor is. Ive noticed this a great deal which is very odd to me... one would think you would look into things like this but what do I know :)

3 bites for an appetizer is on point. The portion sizes at Horizons are just right...if they were any bigger you'd have to skip one of Kate's killer desserts.

The point is, when you finish a meal there, you feel clean and full enough, but still energized and sexy. That's how I know I've had a great meal and they always nail it. If you're unhappy with something there, just let them know.

I work hard for my money, $10 for 3 tiny bites isn't justifiable. Also, after spending a minimum of $60-75, I wanna feel like I got my moneys worth, i'm not too worried about feeling sexy, thats what underwear is for. That's kind of dumb to interpret skinny as sexy, but to each their own. I like a little vegan hairy beer gut, thats sexy.

Anyway, really I don't mind spending the mula, it's delicious food for special occasions, once or twice a year.

Sexy to me means that after a meal, you're able to get it on, rather than crawl home and fall asleep.

I work hard for mine, too, and I deserve a well-executed and thoughtful plate of food, instead of some fried things tucked onto a roll. This is exactly why we don't talk about Horizons on this board because it always leads back to it not being the cheapest option. What about the amazing food?

I've never left the restaurant not feeling full. My 6'7 dining partner has never left hungry either.

However, the solution to your seitan problem is on page 94 in the Horizons cookbook, a good investment if you want to save money but still enjoy the Horizons experience. It's a balsamic and agave glazed seitan that looks very similar to the appetizer, but is an entree portion. 5 ingredients.

Don't hate me, but I'm not the biggest fan of Horizons. It's nothing against the taste, they just don't make much food that I like. I hate tofu and seitan (the horror, I know) so I usually resort to getting a salad there.

The Chocolate-Stuffed Beignets are out of this world though, and I will gladly stick those balls in my mouth any day of the week.

I hate tofu and seitan (the horror, I know) so I usually resort to getting a salad there.

This is actually hilarious. I can imagine a corps-eater going in there and saying well, there's nothing for ME on this menu, so I'll just have a salad, because that's what vegans have to do in my restaurants.

It's odd to me how Horizons gets kinda mixed responses. I think it's impressive they can sustain the business, and while I would gladly eat there more often if I could afford to, I can't, so it's all about Blackbird for me. But if I HAD TO shut down one of the vegan/vegetarian places, it's certainly not Horizons.

I love Horizons! It has grown to be my favorite veg restaurant in Philly. My first visit or two there was meh as I was in sticker shock and not used to such gourmet-type food. Going back for Vegan Drinks there (when they used to hold them @ that location) was a game-changer for me. Half-priced delicious apps such as Korean Seitan Tacos blew my mind. I also love their other seitan and tofu dishes and their desserts are out of this world.

I wish sometimes I still lived in the Philly area so I could partake in their food more often. My omni partner was disappointed in the central NY restaurant scene when we moved here over a year ago because "there isn't any upscale vegan restaurant" like Horizons.